PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — It can be said that every moment, every immediate that Scottie Scheffler spends in the heat of battle is product of thousands of decisions that no one sees.
Decisions like the one he faced Saturday afternoon at The Players Championship, shortly after finishing one of the day’s low rounds at TPC Sawgrass, when Scheffler faced a question of the utmost seriousness: Burrito or bowl?
Golf is a complicated sport, and that’s largely because its champions are built on partial advantages. In 2022, Scheffler’s Strokes Gained: Putting was -.301, which ranked 162nd on Tour and caused some months of continuous apoplexy among the golf talking heads. In 2025, it was .382—an improvement of a little over half a shot per round – and Scheffler was unanimously viewed as one of the best players on Tour and a generally unstoppable force in the sport.
The ripple effect of such incremental improvements can be seen everywhere on a typical weekend on the PGA Tour, where players pursue equipment adjustments, physical therapy and even psychological treatment in the faint hope of an extra decimal point.
“If we can make them literally one percent better every week, then we’ve done something,” says Kellen Watson, a tour representative for Callaway. “One percent is more than enough.”
Given this competitive environment, it should come as no surprise that food has become a major focus. Allergy testing and other recent advances in nutritional science have led many golfers to adopt more restrictive and performance-focused diets. Some players cook everything themselves, avoiding common triggers like gluten and dairy with militaristic zeal. Others bring personal chefs on the road to meet even the most limited dietary needs. The change has been so marked that in 2023, the PGA Tour revamped its nutrition program entirely to serve dietitian-approved menus with different allergens and performance diets at the top.
Many players appreciated the change, which labeled foods not only by ingredients, but also by intended consumption time, such as “RECOVER” and “BEFORE ROLL”. However, not everyone was satisfied.
“It’s actually my complaint here this week that the food is too healthy in the players’ dining,” said Tom Hoge in ’23. “There’s a QR code for us; I filed that complaint. They need food like the rest of the fat people in America eat.”
The truth is, the Hoges of the world are going the way of the dinosaurs on today’s PGA Tour, where macros are counted and inflammatory foods are avoided. The shift toward wellness is especially evident at Sawgrass, where a large, permanent gym hosts the Tour’s traveling fleet of wellness vehicles. These vehicles, called “Performance Centers,” welcome physical therapists, psychologists, trainers and a licensed nutritionist to nearly every program event.
“Basically, what I want is for our athletes to have the same kind of service that a professional sports team has,” said Andy Levinson, SVP of tour administration at the Tour. “So we try to have the same types of equipment, the same services, everything.”
But not every change is so mundane — at the Players Championship, the Tour threw a bone to the Hoges of the world by welcoming a first-of-its-kind addition to the players, corpses and family dining scene: Chipotle.
The versatile fast-casual brand was a late addition to the lineup for Players Week, setting up shop in a small tent just behind the player scoring area. While the menu isn’t as scientifically-sourced or nutritionally dense as traditional player dining offerings, it didn’t take long to become a tournament favorite.
“The 17th is the most photographed location at TPC Sawgrass this week,” said a security guard working in front of the marquee Thursday morning. “But this area could be second.”
Chipotle says they have committed to providing 400 meals a day to Players through a limited menu of burritos and burrito bowls. The customization options are pared down to include only the most popular (and healthiest) menu items, which are cooked in an attached, full-service kitchen by staff drawn from locations throughout the Jacksonville area. At the end of the day, additional meals are provided to security and tour staff.
Chipotle tent.
GOLF
All day, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, the tent was a hub of activity among the competing class. In addition to Scheffler, players like Maverick McNealy (who reportedly plans his tour weeks around visits to Chipotle) and Max Homa were regulars, along with a host of players, tournament staff and other players. The love affair had a simple rationale: food is relatively healthy, easy to find, and very good—three traits that can be elusive during a lifetime spent on the road.
“When I leave on Sunday, it’s my tradition to eat a little bit of bad stuff — usually my favorite airport sweets,” said Homa, who received a Chipotle sponsorship last year. GOLF with a smile. “Otherwise, I try to eat pretty healthy. I’m not counting calories or anything, but good food helps.”
Homa’s spin on nutrition is relatively open-minded. He tries to eat “healthy” during tournaments and competitions, but his diet is not too restrictive. He stays away from red meat in the evening but eats the rainbow. However, Scheffler is similar his Chipotle habits gained him some notoriety in the open championship in July.
“There’s one where I grew up, near the SMU campus. If I went to that Chipotle and tried to eat nowadays, it would be very difficult for me,” Scheffler said. “There’s another one in another part of town I won’t tell you where it is, but if I go there, nobody ever knows me.”
The unifying theory is not brand commitment, but lifestyle. Professional golfers are willing to do big things for small advantages—and as silly as it sounds, a burrito bowl is instrumental in the pursuit of those goals.
“It was nice to see people realize that nutrition is actually very personal,” Homa said. “For example, lettuce is good in a salad, but some people don’t digest lettuce. So I think it’s become a lot more personalized than it was back in the day. When I was growing up, it was, you know, candy is bad, this is good.”
On Saturday at The Players Championship, the specter of personal choice was on full display. As players poured in from a day of moving weather at TPC Sawgrass, the choices facing players were as dizzying as they were varied. Lunch or recovery? Interval time or exercise? Burrito or bowl?
The World No. 1 thought about each of those things as he drove off the 18th green at TPC Sawgrass and toward the score. A few minutes later, Scottie Scheffler had decided on a solution.
“Barbecue in a bowl,” the bean that served him repeated later with a smile. “A little bit of everything in there.”
;)
